The IOC Young Leaders Programme 2025/2028 for Young Emerging Leaders (CHF 10,000 Seed-Funding)

Applications are now open for the 2025/2028 IOC Young Leaders Programme. Young talents who are willing to make a difference and leverage the power of sport to address social challenges in their communities now have the opportunity to apply for the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Young Leaders Programme 2025-2028. The 25 selected participants will be announced in February 2025.

About The IOC Young Leaders Programme

Opportunity Details

Date Published: October 05, 2024
Application Deadline: October 21, 2024
Category: Training

Since the creation of the programme in 2016, IOC Young Leaders have delivered over 160 sport-led projects promoting education and livelihoods, equality and inclusion, health, peace-building and sustainability, directly benefitting more than 37,000 people.

Sponsor Organisation: The International Olympic Committee (IOC)

Benefits of The IOC Young Leaders Programme

The selected participants will be supported by the IOC and a network of mentors in the development of their grassroots projects.
Each of them will receive a total amount of CHF 10,000 seed-funding delivered over the four years, as well as access to monthly expert-led workshops, global gatherings, coaching, networking opportunities and dedicated support.

The IOC Young Leaders Programme Requirements

You need to be between 20 and 28 years old at the time of the application. Age limit principle: you turned or will turn 20 or 28 in 2024.
You will need to have successfully completed the 4-Week Learning Sprint (Certificate of Participation earned)
Through the application process, you will need to submit a plan for a programme / project / social business using sport as a tool for sustainable development, which you will work on if selected as an IOC Young Leader. The proposed plan will need to be based on an existing issue in your community through the lens of the UN SDGs, and strongly linked to sport-based solutions and the Olympic values.
The minimum required education level is high school diploma or equivalent.
You need to have at least one year of work experience (internships and part-time jobs count).

Requirements

Any young person aged between 20 and 28 can register by 21 October 2024 to benefit from the initial four-week Learning Sprint, comprising four virtual sessions and topic-specific reflection tasks.
After successfully completing the Learning Sprint, a candidate becomes eligible to apply for the IOC Young Leaders Programme. Applications will be open from 18 November to 16 December 2024.

Application Date and Process

The process for selecting the IOC Young Leaders for 2025-2028 consists of two phases: the 4-Week Learning Sprint and the IOC Young Leaders Programme application process.

PHASE 1

Completion of the 4-Week Learning Sprint is the first prerequisite for a candidate to be eligible to apply for the IOC Young Leaders Programme.
Registration for the 4-Week Learning sprint opened on 25 September and will close on 21 October 2024.
The four sessions of the 4-Week Learning Sprint will take place from 22 October to 12 November: every Tuesday starting on 22 October.
Learning material of the 4-Week Learning Sprint, including session recordings can be found on the Learning Hub, available on 15 October 2024..

PHASE 2

After successfully completing the 4-Week Learning Sprint (Certificate of Participation earned), a candidate becomes eligible to apply for the IOC Young Leaders Programme.
The application process opens on 18 November and closes on 16 December 2024.

Full description of the application process and criteria

4-Week Learning Sprint Application Form